August 12, 2014

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Four new companies have recently completed the Pre-Incubation Program at the Coastal Bend Business Innovation Center (CBBIC). This means they will now have the opportunity to apply for the full incubation program at the Innovation Center.

The clients are:

Nature’s Zero: The company makes completely natural hair styling products, which contain no alcohol and are unlike any now on the market. The company’s lead product is Matte Clay, which has gained acceptance in the local market and is attracting repeat customers. The company, which is the brainchild of Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi student Michael Mineff, received a scholarship from 1st Community Bank for the Pre-Incubation Program. The bank offers scholarships to residents of Jim Wells, and Nueces Counties, who meet eligibility requirements.

The Dental ALMS Foundation: The foundation isworking on a dental health education kit for children that includes comic book characters, teaching materials, and animated cartoons. The company, led by former Texas A&M-Corpus Christi student Alfred Martinez, received a scholarship from Kleberg Bank. The bank offers Pre-Incubation scholarships to residents of Kleberg and Nueces Counties, who meet eligibility requirements.

VEMMA: The company is developing a direct marketing approach to deliver healthy, quality, nutrition products to the health-conscious consumer. The company is comprised of Texas A&M -Corpus Christi students Derek Drozd and Payton Larkin who are now working to build their sales team and develop an online product and sales training program.

“Weather on Wheels” team: The team isdeveloping a mobile app to forecast travel weather that will provide the traveler a complete forecast of the expected weather conditions all along a pre-determined route with their choice of time intervals. The app will show expected weather conditions at the projected time of arrival at each point. The group is comprised of faculty and staff from the Conrad Blucher Institute at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. This also marks the first time the Innovation Center has assisted with the commercialization of research from A&M-Corpus Christi.

Three of the clients plan to apply for the Innovation Center’s Incubation Program. Applications are now being accepted through Tuesday, Sept. 30, for the next round of Pre-Incubation classes. The Pre-Incubation process helps the entrepreneur define important goals and milestones that should be reached before more time and money is invested into the company. It also helps to validate their business concept, evaluate whether their idea has value, and then to determine what the next steps should be in the process. To learn more or to apply, go to www.innovation4texas.com.

The program consists of nine sessions, which focus on the following topics: the business concept, the market, distribution channels, the target customers, competitors, the business model, and finally, a plan of implementation.